Era 6 · The First Kings2 Samuel
How Are the Mighty Fallen
"Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives"
On the third day after David's return to Ziklag a man comes from Saul's camp with torn clothes and earth on his head. "Saul and Jonathan his son are dead." "I happened by chance upon mount Gilboa, behold, Saul leaned upon his spear… he said unto me… Stand, I pray thee, upon me, and slay me… So I stood upon him, and slew him… and I took the crown that was upon his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm."
David and his men tear their clothes, mourn and fast until evening. "How wast thou not afraid to stretch forth thine hand to destroy the LORD's anointed?" David has the Amalekite killed: "Thy blood be upon thy head; for thy mouth hath testified against thee."
"The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen! Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon… Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew… Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions. Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul… I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women. How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!"
Two accounts of Saul's death
In 1 Samuel 31 Saul falls on his own sword; here an Amalekite claims to have killed him. Most readers take the Amalekite as lying to win favor, since he brings the crown to the man who would be king; others see two traditions. See the passage page in 1 Samuel.
The Book of Jashar
The lament is said to be written in "the book of Jasher" (the upright), also cited in Joshua 10:13. The book is lost; later works with the title are not it. Verse 18 says David taught "the bow" (qeshet): perhaps the name of the poem, perhaps archery. The Vulgate and KJV read it as teaching the use of the bow; the library's Greek omits "bow."
Jonathan's love
"Passing the love of women" has been read as describing covenant friendship, political loyalty, or a romantic bond. The poem does not define it; the site does not impose a modern identity category on it.
The Case for the Biblical Account
Scripture's account
The report of Saul's death and David's lament (2 Samuel 1).
What evidence would we expect?
Royal insignia; ancient laments for fallen warriors; lost poetic collections.
The discoveries
Royal crowns and armlets in ancient art; laments in Mesopotamian and Greek literature; the Book of Jashar cited twice and lost.
Testing the discoveries
The poem's language is archaic in places; its date is debated.
The strongest reconstruction
An old elegy preserved in a collection of poems and set into the story.
What remains possible
That the lament was composed by David.
What the evidence shows
- The Book of Jashar survives. Lost; later books with the name are different works.
- The Amalekite's account is a lie.
- David composed the lament.
Continue the journey
Journey of a Passage1 Samuel 31:3–5; 2 Samuel 1:6–10: How did Saul die?1 Samuel 31 says Saul fell on his own sword.More from this lesson
Echoes Across Civilizations
Optional: how other ancient peoples told similar stories. Open one to compare, then come back to the lesson.
Laments for fallen heroesMesopotamian · Greek · Sumerian
Did other ancient peoples compose laments for fallen warriors and friends?
- Mesopotamian: Gilgamesh mourns Enkidu Shared literary world
- Greek: Achilles mourns Patroclus Resemblance only
- Sumerian: City laments Shared literary world
Why this matters to the rest of Scripture
- Saul falls on his sword.
- The Book of Jashar.
- Jonathan loves David as his own soul.
- "Declare ye it not at Gath."